December 2, 2011 News: Bamboo, this rarely associated with plants in Africa, could become the continent's most important alternative energy, in the prevention of soil degradation and large-scale deforestation has played a key role.
African countries are China and international organizations and a bamboo and rattan, bamboo firewood and charcoal to use alternative wood fuel. Currently, in sub-Saharan Africa, 80% of the rural population is the use of wood as the primary fuel of life.
This effort has been noticed,bamboo kitchen Ethiopia and Ghana has been the development of bamboo biomass as their national renewable energy policy priorities, which also led to interest in other African countries, led to more investment in the production of charcoal. As a green bio-fuels, charcoal can play to reduce deforestation and climate change mitigation role.
"Bamboo is a good grass biological resources, bamboo flooring it is natural growth, located on the African continent, is a good applicability, clean, sustainable fuel that can replace wood fuel wood." INBAR Director-General of the ancient Dr. Jane (Dr.J.CoosjeHoogendoorn) today in South Africa at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (UNFCCCCOP17) spoke of a side that, "Should no such alternative energy sources, the next few years will continue to charcoal as household energy Lord, it will bring disastrous consequences. bamboo furniture quot;
Burning wood serious impact on the climate. Scientists predict that by 2050, African households use wood fuel will produce 6.7 billion tons of greenhouse gases, leading to the tropical rain forest area is reduced, further accelerating climate change.
Extensive use of wood fuel will cause damage to people's health. It is estimated that two million people worldwide each year (mostly women and children) due to inhalation of smoke produced by burning wood and killed. If the charcoal indoors as household fuels continue to be widely used in 2030 will lead up to 10 million premature deaths.
INBAR's "Bamboo: Sustainable biomass" project, is the first of China's bamboo charcoal technology introduced to the project sub-Saharan Africa, dedicated to the use of local bamboo resources to promote sustainable production of green biofuels . This kind of project but also in India and Nepal. As for energy, health and food security, climate change, growing concern about the project by the European Union (EU) and the Common Fund for Commodities (CFC) subsidy.
Slow climate change, save the forests
Needed to produce 1 ton of charcoal up to 7-10 tons of wood raw material. The high consumption of wood fuel and the lack of substitutability, as of 1 billion people of the African continent, an important reason for forest destruction.
"Climate change and food security is a major challenge of this era is well known that the destruction of forests and the livelihoods of people would be the sustainable development of agriculture adversely affected because the destruction of forests with climate change, drought and poverty are closely related." World Bank of Agriculture and climate change team leader Patrick (PatrickVerkooeijen) said, "In the next few decades, addressing food security issues requires wisdom and innovation, we need to use more sustainable way, using less land to produce more food for people . "
In fact, scientists believe that deforestation in the Horn of Africa is largely caused widespread drought in the region. From the international CGIAR research suggests that years of logging, especially in serious cases of Somalia, the destruction of the fragile forest system, so this piece of land of its last line of defense against desertification, drought, large areas of sparsely populated forest and pasture eventually become useless desert.
International Energy Agency predicts that by 2030, household consumption of sub-Saharan Africa will have three-quarters of the energy from biomass sources.